The following Background of the Invention is intended to aid the reader in understanding the invention and is not admitted to be prior art.
The inclusion of positive and negative control tests in the performance of an assay is considered an important component of any assay. In immunological tests, these control tests are often performed by including an analyte binding control test in the assay, which may appear as a colored line on the test strip. These types of control tests are effective for verifying that the assay device is functioning correctly, but they also result in added expense in making the device and performing the assay, particularly when the specific binding molecules used in the control test are produced as a result of elaborate procedures. Additionally, these types of controls can be confusing for the untrained general consumer and lead to improper test interpretation. There is therefore a need for better methods and apparatuses for performing sample collection and testing.